Railroad track-wrench.



PATENTBD SEPT. 13, 1904 E. F. MILTENBERGER.

RAILROAD TRACK WRENCH.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 13,1904.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented September 13, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

RAILROAD TRACK-WRENCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 769,759, dated September 13, 1904.

Application filed June 13, 1904- Serial No. 212,312. (No model.)

To (all whom it new concern:

Be it known that I, EUG FRANCISOUS MIL- TENBERGER, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Railroad Trackrenches, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description.

My invention relates to a machine-wrench for use in tightening or loosening the nuts on fish-plate bolts of railroad-tracks.

My object is to provide an improved device of this character which will be easily and quickly applied, powerful in action, simple in construction, light, strong, and not easily broken or put out of order.

Briefly, my invention contemplates a wrench-socket rotatably mounted in a suitable frame and connected, by means of a bevel-gear, with the lower end of an operating-shaft, the upper end of which is provided with a suitable handle. The wrench-socket may have the bevel gear-wheel formed integrally therewith at its rear edge, and this gear may mesh with a pinion mounted upon the lower end of the operating-shaft, which is preferably vertically disposed. Means are provided for holding the wrench socket in operative position, said means being preferably a pivoted gripper adapted to reach over the rail and grasp the opposite side thereof, said gripper also preferably having a portion adapted to engage the head of the lish-bolt to prevent its withdrawal or turning while the nut is being turned. I preferably provide a foot-lever for setting the gripper. The device may thus be put into service in a moment without requiring the workman even to stoop or to change his hold of the handle. The socket portion is simply placed over a nut, the gripper thrown over the rail by a push with the foot, and set by pressing down on the foot-lever.

I will describe my invention more particularly and explain the details of construction by reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the preferred embodiment thereof, and the parts, improvements, or combinations which I regard as novel will be pointed out in the concluding claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is aside view of my improved track-wrench, showing the same applied to a rail. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the lower operating portion thereof. Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view on line 3 3 of Fig. L, and Fig. 4 is a rear view.

The same parts are designated by the same letters of reference wherever they are shown.

The wrench-socket a and the bevel-gear a at the rear edge thereof may be formed integrally in a single casting which is mounted to rotate in a bearing-ring b in the frame .7). The geared wrench-socket may be inserted in the bearing-ring I) from the rear and secured against removal by a set-ring screwing upon its forward end to take the slight end thrust.

Upon the upper part of the frame I) is provided a bearing-collar 7), preferably set vertically, in which the operating-shaft a is journaled. The lower end of said shaft carries a pinion (Z, which meshes with the gear-wheel upon the wrench-socket to turn the same. The upper end of the operating-shaft is provided with a handle 0, like an auger-handle, by which the device may be manipulated.

The wrench-socket is formed with an angular bore or recess adapted to fit the nut of a fish-plate bolt. In the device illustrated the recess is hexagonal.

Projections having chisel edges 7F 5 are formed upon the frame to lie against the rail and prevent the frame from turning when held against the rail by the gripper g. This gripper in the form shown is like a double cant-hook formed from a-U-shaped bar having a central portion 7' thereof bent down to form the hook, the ends of said bar being pivoted to a foot-lever The foot-lever may likewise'be formed of a U-shaped bar with its ends pivoted at e e to the frame 7). The footlever thus forms a sort of toggle adapted when depressed to draw the hooked portion of the gripper and the engaging parts 71 b of the frame very tightly against the opposite sides of the rail-head. Pointed screws ff may be provided in the hook portion of the gripper to bite into the rail. The lower portion of the hook is intended to come against the head of the bolt on the opposite side of the rail from the nut to hold the bolt against withdrawal and turning while the nut is being tightened or loosened.

The device as above described is very easily and quickly operated. The workman holding the handle 0 swings the lower end of the device against the rail to bring the wrenchsocket a over the nut of a fish-bolt, the gripper g being normally raised, as shown in dot ted lines in Fig. 2. With the toe of his boot the Workman can then kick over the gripper into position to engage the rail, the foot-lever being brought into the position shown in clotted lines in Fig. 1, and finally by bringing his heel down upon the yoke portion of the footlever the device will be securely clamped in place. The nut can now be tightened or loosened, as desired, by rotating the operating-shaft in a corresponding manner. Should the device be clamped too tightly upon the track to permit the foot-lever to be easily raised or loosened, the set-screws f f may be unscrewed and the device thus easily and quickly loosened.

It will be seen that the parts of this device are few in number, simple, strong, easily put together and not likely to get out of order, and the whole apparatus is light, compact, and easily carried about. The facility with which it can be applied to the track will be appreciated.

Having thus described my invention, I claim 1. In a track-wrench the combination with a rotatable wrench-socket and a supportingframe therefor, of an operating-shaft connected by bevel-gearing with said wrenchsocket, a foot-lever pivoted to said frame and a cant-hook gripper reaching over the head of the rail to engage the opposite side thereof, said cant-hook gripper being pivoted to the arm of said footlever between its fulcrum and tread to form a toggle mechanism whereby the wrench may be clamped to the rail.

2. In a track-wrench, the combination with a rotatably-mounted wrench-socket having a bevel-gear at its rear edge facing forwardly, a bevel-pinion immediately above said wrenchsocket and meshing with the gear portion thereof, an operatingshaft on the end whereof said pinion is mounted, means for rotating said operating-shaft to turn said wrench-socket through the medium of said gear, and means for holding said socket in operative position against a rail to engage a nut or bolt thereof.

3. In a track-wrench, the combination with a rotatably-mounted Wrench-socket having a bevel-gear formed at its edge, of a substantially vertical operating-shaft having ahandle at its upper end andabevel-pinion at its lower end meshing with said gear, a frame in which said gear and pinion are mounted, a canthook adapted to reach over the head of the rail to grip the same and hold the wrenchsocket in an operative position upon a nut or bolt, a foot-lever pivotally mounted on said frame and connected to said cant-hook to tighten the same when depressed and sharpened projections b on said frame on each side of the axis thereof adapted to bite into the side of the railhead,whereby the frame is held against rotation when power is applied to turn the wrench upon a nut, as set forth.

f. In atrack-wrench the combination witha wrench-socket, of a frame in which the same is mounted to rotate, an operating-shaft having a handle at its upper end and bevel-gearing at its lower end connecting the same with said Wrench-socket, chisel-edged projections on said frame adapted to bite against the side of the rail, and a gripper adapted to engage the opposite side of the rail to clamp the rail and support the wrench in an operative position thereon, said gripper having sharpened poiitions adapted to bite into the side of the ra1 5. In atrack-wrench the combination with a rotatable wrench-socket and a frame in which the same is mounted, of a substantially vertical operating-shaft having a handle at its upper end and connected at its lower end by bevel-gearing with said wrench-socket, a canthook gripper pivoted to said frame adapted to reach over a rail-head to grasp the same and hold the wrench in operative relation to the rail and fish-bolt nut, a depending portion of said gripper being adapted to engage the head of the fish-bolt on the opposite side of the rail from the nut which is engaged by said wrench-socket, a foot-lever fulcrumed upon said frame and pivoted to said gripper to tighten the same when depressed, and sharpened projections upon said frame on each side of the axis thereof, said frame adapted to engage the rail to prevent lateral rocking of the operating-shaft and frame upon the nut or bolt as an axis.

6. In a track-wrench the combination with a wrench-socket having a bevel-gear at its rear edge, of a supporting-frame having a bearing in which said wrench-socket is adapted to rotate, a collar screwing on the forward end of said wrench-socket to abut against said bearing, a vertical bearing portion carried by said frame above said Wrench-socket, an operatingshaft rotatably mounted in said vertical bearing and carrying a bevel-pinion meshing with said gear on the wrench-socket, a U-shaped foot-lever having its arms pivoted at the sides of said frame, the middle outer portion of said lever forming a tread, a U-shaped gripper having its arms pivoted to the arms of said foot-lever and having its middle outer portion bent over to form a cant-hook, said gripper being adapted to reach over the top of a rail to engage the opposite side thereof and hold the device in operative position.

7. In a track-wrench, the combination with a cylindrical Wrench-socket (4, having a forwardly-facing bevel-gear a at its rear edge, a frame having a bearing-ring I) in which said wrench-socket is mounted to rotate, a bearingcollar 6 in the upper part of said frame, an operating-shaft journaled to rotate in said bearing-collar, a pinion carried by said shaft below the bearing-collar, meshing with said bevel-gear a, and a U-shaped cant-hook gripper having its arms pivoted to the arms of said foot-lever between the tread and the pivotal fulcrum thereof,substantially as set forth.

8. In a track-wrench, the combination with the frame, the Wrench-socket, and means for rotating the same, said frame having sharpened portions on each side of its axis adapted to bite into the side of the rail-head, of a U- In witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name this 6th day of June, A. D. 1904.

EUGENE FRANCISCUS MILTENBERGER. WVitn esses:

JESSIE S. Fox, I'IELEN CALDWELL. 

